SNAP

My home market organization continues to pilot new ways to include at-risk populations into their community. The staff shared with me that they studied the Sustainable Food Center’s work in Austin TX with CVB to design their pilot. This mock program will lead the state into seeing how WIC families benefit from markets in terms of social and intellectual capital as well as increasing their regular access to healthy food.

(The article seems to state that CCFM has been doing SNAP redemptions since 2008; actually it has been accepting EBT cards to redeem SNAP benefits since 2005 and doing market matches on different programs since before then, including a seafood bucks program and a FMNP reward program for seniors to spend once they spent their FMNP coupons. The incentive added to SNAP has been a program in existence at the market since around 2008.)

Market Umbrella deserves credit for its continued innovation and the staff and board’s willingness to constantly explore ways to increase their markets’ reach.

“I’m disappointed that the rules don’t go as far as what was proposed early this year,” said Danielle Nierenberg, president of Food Tank, a nutrition advocacy group. “USDA has missed an opportunity to increase the availability of and access to healthier foods for low-income Americans.”

The earlier proposals also recommended leaving food with multiple ingredients like frozen pizza or canned soup off the staple list. The outcome is a win for the makers of such products, like General Mills Inc. and Campbell Soup Co., which feared they would lose shelf space as retailers added new items to meet the requirements.

But retailers still criticized the new guidelines as too restrictive. Stores must now stock seven varieties of staples in each food category: meat, bread, dairy, and fruits and vegetables….

…More changes to the food-stamp program may lie ahead. The new rules were published a day after the House Committee on Agriculture released a report* calling for major changes to the program, which Republicans on the committee say discourages recipients from finding better-paid work.

*Some of the findings from the 2016 Committee on Agriculture Report “Past, Present, and Future of SNAP” are below.

• Program participation nearly doubled (up 81 percent from FY 2007 to FY 2013) as a result of the recent recession. In an average month in FY 2007, 26.3 million people (or about 9 percent of the U.S. population) were enrolled in SNAP. That increased to 47.6 million people (or about 15 percent of the U.S. population) in FY 2013, owing to the fact that the economy was slow to recover and many families remained reliant on SNAP. Even now, with a 4.6 percent unemployment rate (compared to a 9.6 percent unemployment rate for 2010), there were still 43.4 million SNAP participants as of July 2016.• SNAP is now a catchall for individuals and families who receive no or lower benefits from other welfare programs, largely because the eligibility criteria in SNAP are relatively more relaxed. As a result, the net effect has been to increase SNAP enrollment. For example, in the welfare reforms of 1996, the cash welfare program Aid to Families with Dependent Children (AFDC) was converted into a block grant known as TANF, which has rather rigorous work and activity requirements and includes a time limit. Another program available to those who are laid off from work is Unemployment Insurance (UI). These benefits require individuals to have a work history and to be fired through no fault of their own to be eligible for assistance. UI benefits are also time-limited, typically lasting six months. A third program, Federal disability benefits, requires individuals to prove they are unable to work. For many families who have not collected SNAP in the past, SNAP is now a default option for filling in the gaps.• USDA data shows that spending on SNAP remains three times what it was prior to the recession ($23.09 billion pre-recession average compared to $73.99 billion post-recession in FY 2015). However, SNAP spending is now projected to be significantly lower than it was estimated at passage of the 2014 Farm Bill.• For FY 2017, the maximum monthly benefit in the 48 contiguous states and DC is $194 for a one-person household, $357 for a two-person household, and $649 for a four-person household.17 In determining a household’s benefit, the net monthly income of the household is multiplied by 30 percent (because SNAP households are expected to spend 30 percent of their income on food), and the result is subtracted from the maximum benefit to determine the household’s benefit.• Seniors have the lowest rates of SNAP participation among eligible households of any demographic. While the low participation rate has a variety of causes, a prominent explanation is the stigma associated with SNAP and welfare in general. Many factors contribute to a lack of access to food among seniors, including a lack of a substantial income, the gap between Medicaid and the cost of living, limited income with specialized diets, and mental and physical illnesses. The issues facing these populations must be viewed holistically, with SNAP as one piece of a larger solution to solving hunger for seniors.

According to research by the AARP Foundation—a charitable affiliate of AARP—over 17 percent of adults over the age of 40 are food-insecure. Among age cohorts over age 50, food insecurity was worse for the 50-59 age group, with over 10 percent experiencing either low or very low food security. Among the 60-69 age cohort, over 9 percent experienced similar levels of food insecurity, and over 6 percent among the 70+ population.

• The operation of the program is at the discretion of each state. For instance, in California, SNAP is a county-run program. In Texas, SNAP is administered by the state… Dr. Angela Rachidi of the American Enterprise Institute cited a specific example in New York City where SNAP, WIC, school food programs, and child and adult care programs are all administered by different agencies and the result is that each agency must determine eligibility and administer benefits separately.

K. Michael Conaway, Chairman of the House Committee on Agriculture. Hearing of the House of Representatives, Committee on Agriculture. Past, Present, and Future of SNAP. February 25, 2015. Washington, D.C. Find report here

From CNN this week:

The number of people seeking emergency food assistance increased by an average of 2% in 2016, the United States Conference of Mayors said in its annual report Wednesday.

The majority, or 63%, of those seeking assistance were families, down from 67% a year ago, the survey found. However, the proportion of people who were employed and in need of food assistance rose sharply — increasing to 51% from 42%.

… with the launch today (March 7) of the Plant Based Foods Association, a new collective voice is set to join the fray. Organized by its executive director, food and public health attorney Michele Simon, the group’s goals will be similar to those of its animal-based counterparts: public education, media outreach, and lobbying—only in this case it will seek to change the policies that put eggs, meat, and dairy front and center.

“The deck is stacked against plant-based foods because they cost more and people can’t find them,” Simon told Quartz. The new association, she says, is aimed at “leveling the playing field.” To do that, the organization will educate retailers and foodservice companies about these products, Simon says, and it has hired Elizabeth Kucinich, who previously served as policy director at the Center for Food Safety and as director of government affairs at the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine, to represent the group in Washington as its policy and partnerships consultant. (Kucinich is the wife of ex-congressman and former presidential candidate Dennis Kucinich, and she helped form the Congressional Vegetarian Staff Association.)

Like this:

This is (basically) the same system that Crescent City Farmers Market (CCFM) in New Orleans has used to gather data from incentive users (incentiv-ers?) since they began doing them some years back. They call their incentive Market Match.

As one of the staff who was responsible for doing it when it began and was part of the discussion about it, I really liked it. It is on a pad that is pulled off to have the person fill out and then each slip is added to the clipboard (or put in a container) to be entered into spreadsheets at a later time. The darker grey is filled out by the market staff person after the other part is completed by the shopper. What I know is that the system was designed with both the shopper and the market staff needs in minds, which as we all know is important and yet not always done. I’d like them to be numbered chronologically so as to know that none were lost. Maybe they are numbered, I’ll check to see.

Sorry for the wrinkles- it ended up in my market bag under the citrus. I’ll get some more pics of their system-including a better version of this and maybe the other collection forms if they will allow me to continue to peek over their shoulder.

This week is the deadline for all merchants to have new machines with chip and pin technology. RE-reposting to remind everyone to remind everyone to ask for updated machines.

(and here is some detailed background info about credit cards and how the fees are designed that was posted on an electronic bulletin board site recently. Warning-VERY detailed!)

*This is a reposting to remind markets to check in with vendors and with your own credit card processor to ensure your readers are up to date. NOFA-VT leader Erin Buckwalter asked me about Square readers on a call today which reminded me to repost this information. And so yes, Square has an updated version as well, so make sure anyone using that or any other older card processing technology for credit cards is updating it!

*original post*
Was fortunate to be on a call with market state and network leaders today and to hear speakers including Kim Lyons, a long time supporter of small retailers at MerchantSource®; she gave us a great overview today of the chip and pin enabled devices/aka EMV devices/aka smart card technology that is coming down the pike. Here is what I heard, and as I get updates I’ll post them here and if what I wrote here needs to be corrected by my more able colleagues, I’ll also update. But since I know many markets don’t have state or network support systems, I felt it was necessary to get this on radar screens asap.And do remember, this is also important for market vendors that have their own credit card machine to address, so feel to print this out and share widely.

Chip and pin technology has existed for many years in Europe but had not been pushed in the US market- that was, until some of the worst security breaches of cards seen happened in the past year, including the Home Depot and Target breaches. So, whether or not those issues would be solved by it, chip and pin technology is coming and coming soon.

This technology means credit and debit cards contain an embedded microchip and are authenticated automatically using a PIN. When a customer uses a card, it is placed into a “Point of Sale” (POS) terminal, which connects to the chip on the card. To complete the transaction, the customer enters a 4-digit PIN. These new technologies are meant to reduce the likelihood of breaches, especially at the merchant level. This is also true of new app-based systems (also called “contactless systems”) like Apple Pay which allow a user to upload credit cards to their iPhone 6 and use encrypted “near-field technology” to just tap or wave the smart phone at the merchant pad. The card itself never leaves ones wallet in those cases.

This chip and pin technology directly relates to all debit and credit but not to EBT only technology because EBT uses a different software kernel (system). However, many expect FNS to address this issue with changes in their technology sooner or later.
Important to note: This technology is for “card present” (CP) transactions and so internet or phone based transactions aka card not present (CNP) transactions will need their own version of chip and pin; some exist already. Of course, markets are not usually running CNP transactions so this is less of an issue right now for physical farmers markets.

There is a great deal left to learn about these issues as markets move into the next generation of technology. What is crucial to understand right now is the expected deadline of October 2015 for having this emv/pci compliant technology will shift liability of any breach on to merchant’s shoulders rather than the merchant providers of Mastercard/Visa etc. After that expected date of October 2015, in order for liability of any breach to stay with the merchant service providers, it will be necessary for any retailer to have these integrated pin pads or systems at that point. That means either adopting brand new card technology or app-based services like Apple Pay or upgrading their existing magnetic stripe only capabilities.
Once again, this technology is not directly related to EBT right now as a different type of technology so EBT only machines are not affected at this time but rumors abound of possible changes…

A recap of what is written above: Markets or state associations need to know if their merchant service providers or app-based solutions are emv/pci/contactless compliant. This new technology needs to be embedded into their pin pads or new technology by October of 2015 or the liability for any breach shifts to the merchant (read market). That entering into any lease system for readers at this point may mean getting technology that is “end of life” and cannot be upgraded or may mean paying for equipment after its technology is outdated. (Leasing versus renting contract language also needs to be understood by the buyer!) So, state associations, national partners and advocates for farmers and markets are working hard to understand these issues and to find resources for markets and farmers to understand the issues that will arise.

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What was also raised on this call was Farmers Market Coalition’s new contract with FNS to administer 3.3 million in support grants to markets for EBT systems and 700,000 in replacement equipment. I am sure that system along with the existing Marketlink system (which is an entirely separate program from FMC’s contract and supports NEW EBT systems for markets and for market farmers) are both going to work diligently on making sure these new systems are addressed.
Start reading up, folks.

Like this:

Some very exciting projects in here. Congratulations to all of the successful organizations.

As approved by Congress in the President’s FY 2014 budget request for FNS (The Food and Nutrition Service: 2014, Explanatory Notes), these funds are intended to support “the participation of farmers’ markets in SNAP by providing equipment and support grants to new markets and those currently participating in the program.” The goals of the FMSSG program are to increase SNAP accessibility and participation at farmers’ markets, and support the establishment, expansion, and promotion of SNAP/Electronic Benefits Transfer (EBT) services at farmers’ markets. This is a new program, which may continue in subsequent years.

Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP)

Plant Chicago, NFP – Ensuring SNAP Success at Plant Chicago’s Farmers Market
Chicago, IL
Choice Neighborhood
Estimated Federal Funding: $15,379
Plant Chicago’s Ensuring SNAP Success project, will improve SNAP programming in the urban center of Chicago, IL by increasing SNAP-customers at the organization’s farmers market through community, bi-lingual outreach and a local marketing campaign. Through this project the SNAP program at the market will expand to include a volunteer program for weekdays and weekends. Plant Chicago intends to increase SNAP participation at their market by over 25% for 2017.

Trust for Conservation Innovation – Making Farmers Market Purchases a SNAP in Northern California
San Francisco, CA
Choice Neighborhood
Estimated Federal Funding: $123,068
The Making Farmers Market Purchases a SNAP in Northern California project will support staffing for the SNAP at eight small-scale farmers markets in Northern California that currently struggle to provide SNAP on a regular basis. Through this project, these markets will receive EBT technical training and assistance. Additionally, the project will increase SNAP redemptions at farmers markets through community outreach and promotion and develop best practices to ensure growth and sustainability.

Morgantown Farmers’ Market Growers Association – Expanding a Targeted SNAP Program to Demographically-Diverse Member Markets
Morgantown, WV
Strike Force State
Estimated Federal Funding: $36,599
Through the FMSSG, the Morgantown Farmers’ Market Growers Association will hire an EBT coordinator to manage the growing SNAP at two farmers markets and increase redemptions by engaging in outreach specifically targeted to SNAP-participants in urban food-desert of West Virginia. The Association will also identify best practices that can be incorporated into a long-term plan for the SNAP at other markets throughout West Virginia.

Growing Places Indy, Inc. – Indy Winter Farmers Market (IWFM) “Good Eating Is a SNAP, All Winter Long”
Indianapolis, IN
Promise Zone
Estimated Federal Funding: $58,740
The Indy Winter Farmers Market (IWFM) “Good Eating Is a SNAP, All Winter Long” program will increase access to SNAP by hiring a dedicated EBT manager that will also coordinate educational demonstrations and outreach materials. This staff member will provide farmer vendors with needed training and technical support. These activities will help to increase the consumption of farmers market products by SNAP customers and give farmers the tools they need to increase SNAP redemptions and build their businesses.

Homefull – Growing SNAP Success with Southwest Ohio Farmers’ Markets
Montgomery, OH
Estimated Federal Funding: $113,258
Through Growing SNAP Success with Southwest Ohio Farmers’ Markets, Homefull will reach a three-county area to bolster and increase SNAP at over fifteen local farmers markets and promote SNAP availability at the participating markets. Homefull will achieve this through EBT training and technical assistance, outreach, EBT staffing, and market ambassadors. The project plans to double the number and dollar value of SNAP transactions at southwest Ohio farmers markets.

The Experimental Station-6100 Blackstone – EBT Support and Outreach For Illinois Farmers Markets and SNAP Clientele
Chicago, IL
Choice Neighborhood
Estimated Federal Funding: $250,000
Over a two-year project, the Experimental Station will provide EBT support to Illinois farmers markets accepting SNAP through EBT/SNAP consulting, technical support and establishing an online community of EBT support to Illinois farmers markets. This project will also create and disseminate outreach materials and television advertisements, to create greater awareness of the availability of SNAP at Illinois farmers markets. The Experimental Station aims to double SNAP sales at markets throughout Illinois during the life of this project.

Houston Department of Health and Human Services – Expanding Opportunity for Use of SNAP at Houston Farmers Markets
Houston, TX
Strike Force State
Estimated Federal Funding: $250,000
The Houston Department of Health and Human Services through the Expanding Opportunity for Use of SNAP at Houston Farmers’ Markets project will provide staff and EBT technical support and promotional activities related to the expansion of SNAP acceptance at Houston farmers markets. Outreach and promotional activities will be implemented in partnership with local community organizations to increase the number of farmers markets accepting SNAP to six. The project aims to increase the number of SNAP transactions at farmers markets within the City of Houston to 8,980 by 2018.

Missouri Farmers Market Association – Growing SNAP at Farmers Markets in Missouri
Webb City, Missouri
Choice Neighborhood
Estimated Federal Funding: $73,160
The Missouri Farmers Market Association will expand the SNAP at ten farmers markets throughout Missouri. SNAP-expansion will occur through a variety of marketing tools tailored to the individual market and its SNAP-customers. The marketing tools range from radio advertising to cooking demonstrations, to banners, and brochures, all designed to best reach local SNAP-participants.

Hamakua Harvest, Inc. – Hamakua Harvest Farmers’ Market SNAP/EBT Expansion Program
Honokaa, HI
Estimated Federal Funding: $137,174
The Hamakua Harvest Farmers’ Market SNAP/EBT Expansion Program will support the newly-authorized farmers market in Honokaa, HI gain the support it needs to thrive. The funds will be used to promote and expand the SNAP through staffing an EBT manager, purchasing SNAP supplies, training for EBT market vendors, and outreach to SNAP-recipients. Hamakua Harvest anticipates the impact of the project to include 36 vendors to be trained to accept SNAP.

North Union Farmers Market – Increasing SNAP Benefit Use at North Union’s Cleveland Markets through Educational Outreach and Targeted Marketing
Cleveland, OH
Choice Neighborhood
Estimated Federal Funding: $59,302
North Union Farmers Market will strengthen their SNAP by hiring a part-time educational coordinator who will be responsible for expanding the market’s outreach programs and build relationships with community partners that work with SNAP-clients. The expanded outreach programs will include cooking demonstrations, family-friendly educational activities and workshops on food preservation. The North Union Farmers Market will also implement a marketing program using print and digital media and radio advertisements. The anticipated impact of the project is an increase in redemptions by 10%.

Broad Street Events, INC. – Spotlight on Snap, Raising SNAP Awareness in Rural Michigan
Chesaning, Michigan
Estimated Federal Funding: $17,480
The project Spotlight on SNAP will effectively market the SNAP to surrounding SNAP-residents and increase the amount of SNAP users at the Downtown Chesaning Market. Funding will provide the needs to expand outreach and effectively promote SNAP through market activities, newspaper articles, television commercials, and outreach events. Broad Street Events will partners with many local organizations and schools with high populations of SNAP-recipients.

Village of Park Forest – Park Forest Farmers’ Market EBT Program
Park Forest, IL
Choice Neighborhood
Estimated Federal Funding: $16,975
The Park Forest Farmers’ Market EBT Program will increase SNAP benefit redemption at the Park Forest Farmers Market by hiring an EBT manager who will administer the program, plan and implement outreach strategies for informing SNAP participants of their ability to use benefits at the farmers market, and conduct trainings for farmer-producers new to the market on participation in the EBT program. By expanding the EBT program, the market can continue to involve more vendors and offer greater varieties of products available to SNAP customers.

Harvest Home Farmer’s Market – Farm Fresh for Every Body
New York, NY
Choice Neighborhood
Estimated Federal Funding: $250,000
Through 19 different farmers markets in food-deserts around New York, Harvest Home will increase the number of SNAP transactions processed at their farmers markets, increase the number of farmers and vendors who serve SNAP recipients, and broaden their reach into the surrounding communities. Harvest Hands will achieve these goals by creating culturally and linguistically appropriate promotional materials to reach SNAP-recipients, improve the technology needed to process SNAP transactions on-site and in real time, and conduct ongoing vendor SNAP recruitment for farmer producers.

Everyone’s Harvest – Monterey County SNAP Initiative
Marina, CA
Estimated Federal Funding: $109,716
Everyone’s Harvest will double its annual SNAP redemptions and grow its SNAP customer base by 70% by using a customer relationship management database and outreach to SNAP market shoppers. The organization will achieve this by engaging Spanish-speaking community members in producing a Spanish-language promotional video focused on SNAP and creating a mailing and email outreach campaign.

Eastern Market Corporation – Eastern Market: Detroit’s SNAP Food Security Blanket
Detroit, MI
Strong Cities Strong Communities
Estimated Federal Funding: $249,663
The Eastern Market: Detroit’s SNAP Food Security Blanket program will provide resources for program support staff, consulting fees, and supplies to allow for significant program improvements through increased operational efficiencies and greater program effectiveness. This will be achieved by discontinuing the use of a paper-based system and expanding the SNAP program to an additional market.

Friends of the Rochester Public Market, Inc. – Greater Rochester Farmers’ Market SNAP Collaborative
Rochester, NY
Estimated Federal Funding: $178,902
Through the Greater Rochester Farmers’ Market SNAP Collaborative project the Friends of the Rochester Public Market will implement a community-wide marketing campaign that increases awareness of SNAP use at regional farmers markets. Additionally funds will be used to develop a new SNAP Token Center at the Public Market and staff salaries for SNAP related activities

Glenville State College Research Corporation – Expansion of Acceptance of SNAP at the Gilmer County Farmers’ Market: Population of low income households in a food desert
Glenville, WV
Strike Force State
Estimated Federal Funding: $42,020
This project will use funds to design and distribute educational posters and handouts, create and execute an extensive marketing campaign including TV and radio ads, provide salary for an EBT operator and manager, and train volunteers and market staff on SNAP procedures.

City of Independence – Increasing SNAP Awareness and Utilization at Independence Farmers’ and Craft Market
Independence, MO
Choice Neighborhood
Estimated Federal Funding: $144,976|
The City of Independence will use FMSSG funds to design and implement a marketing plan for the Independence Farmers market through movie, billboard, local print and bus advertisements, additionally banners and other printed advertising material will be used at the farmers market and distributed throughout the community. City staff will also perform outreach and educational events in order to increase redemptions at the farmers market due to higher community awareness of SNAP at the farmers market.

Florida Certified Organic Growers and Consumers, Inc. – Increasing the Capacity of Fresh Access Bucks in Florida
Gainesville, FL
FINI & Choice Neighborhood
Estimated Federal Funding: $250,000
The Increasing the Capacity of Fresh Access Bucks in Florida project will use FMSSG funds to pay personnel for SNAP administration, organization to provide resources, and technical assistance to farmers market managers. The project will also develop strategic branding and promotional materials for FL farmers markets and promote SNAP at markets through regular press releases, advertising on the radio, in newspapers, on public transit, on electric bills in each county, direct mailings, and through social media.

Boulder County Public Health – Building and Growing Regional Capacity for SNAP at Farmers’ Markets in Colorado’s Front Range
Boulder, CO
Strike Force State
Estimated Federal Funding: $231,460
The Boulder County Public Health will use funds to staff a farmers market SNAP coordinator, conduct focus groups on the barriers to accessing farmers markets, develop and implement an outreach plan, train farmers and market managers on managing a SNAP program, hire bi-lingual staff for markets, and create communication tools to distribute best practices to farmers markets in the county.

Appalachian Sustainable Agriculture Project – Increasing SNAP at NC Farmers Markets
Asheville, NC
Strike Force State
Estimated Federal Funding: $164,625
Through the Increasing SNAP at NC Farmers Markets project, the Appalachian Sustainable Agriculture Project will conduct outreach and promotion to and collaboration with local agencies on SNAP at farmers markets, conduct trainings for market managers and farmers on how to increase SNAP redemptions at markets, evaluate community needs through research and surveys, and provide technical assistance to market managers following their initial training.

Hub City Farmers’ Market – Expanding South Carolina’s SNAP Use at Farmers Markets
Spartanburg, SC
Strike Force State
Federal Funding: $247,100
This project seeks to create a market model that can serve as an inspiration to markets across the state, alleviate market and user barriers, and help municipalities understand the importance of supporting SNAP in markets they run. Hub City Farmers’ Market of Spartanburg will work with Eat Smart Move More South Carolina and the University of South Carolina Center for Research in Nutrition and Health Disparities to develop a set of best practices to help mentor two markets in key areas of the State.

El Dorado County Trails Farm Association – Improvement and Expansion of EDC Farm Trails Association Farmers’ Market SNAP Program
Placerville, CA
Federal Funding: $16,057
The project’s main goal is to boost public awareness of farmers’ market accepting SNAP benefits. Applicant plans to partner with the Health and Human Services Department and El Dorado CNAP to conduct outreach along with media blitz and raise awareness about the program.

Ecology Center – California Farmers’ Market EBT Program
Alameda, CA
Strong Cities, Strong Communities (SC2)
Federal Funding: $242,828
The project’s aims to support the Ecology Center’s CA Farmers Market EBT program and will: (1) reach out to the 350 CA farmers’ markets that do not yet offer SNAP access with a compelling Case Statement on the benefits of accepting SNAP; (2) provide comprehensive technical assistance, training, shopper outreach materials, scrip, and systems to help a minimum of 120 of those markets add SNAP access; (3) update, improve, and maintain FMfinder.org, the Ecology Center’s website and mobile site designed to helps SNAP shoppers easily find up-to-the-minute information on CA farmers’ markets where they can use their benefits; (4) work with the Departments of Social Services in Los Angeles and Alameda Counties to mail over 1.3M inserts to 632,205 SNAP in order to educate them about the availability of SNAP programs at local farmers’ markets and direct the shoppers to FMfinder.org to find locations and hours of operation; and (5) through these combined efforts, increase SNAP sales at CA Farmers’ Markets by $1.23M (a 33% increase over 2014) by the end of the grant term.

Kokomo Farmers Market Corp – SNAP To Kokomo Farmers’ Market: a targeted marketing, outreach and expansion project to increase SNAP user participation and benefits use at the KDFM
Kokomo, IN
Federal Funding: $248,770
The project goals are to (1) increase SNAP client accessibility and participation at the Kokomo Downtown Farmers Market (KDFM) through extended hours, targeted outreach and expanded marketing, to (2) improve systems for SNAP transactions, recording, and reporting, and to (3) support SNAP recipients with cooking and preserving demonstrations at various outreach locations.

Maine Federation of Farmers’ Markets – Building a SNAP Support System for Maine Farmers’ Markets
Pittsfield, ME
Estimated Federal Funding: $249,677
The Main Federation of Farmers’ Markets will use funds to provide training for market managers and farmers on EBT, provide support and technical assistance for local farmers markets, produce and utilize SNAP-Farmers Market communication tools, update EBT training manual, implement a branding campaign in conjunction with FINI, and develop and train market liaisons.

Billings Forge Community Works, Inc. – More SNAP: Local Vegetables and Fruit for Hartford Tables
Hartford, CT
Promise Zone
Estimated Federal Funding: $198,776
The More SNAP: Local Vegetables and Fruit for Hartford Tables project will involve rolling-out promotional plan for SNAP at farmers markets, which includes various advertisements, produce a farmers market toolkit, and train market managers and farmers on EBT.

Ajo Center for Sustainable Agriculture – Good Food For All – Introducing SNAP at Authentically Ajo Farmers Market
Ajo, AZ
Strike Force State
Estimated Federal Funding: $223,530
The Good Food for All project will expand and support the SNAP/EBT program at the Ajo Farmers Market, design and implement standard practices, provide training on EBT for market vendors and volunteers meeting the needs of SNAP-clients in a poor rural area.

Council on the Environment, Inc. (GrowNYC) – Branding and Advertising to Boost SNAP Sales at Greenmarket
New York, NY
Choice Neighborhood
Estimated Federal Funding: $186,335
GrowNYC will create a branding and advertising campaign that promotes SNAP acceptance at Greenmarkets throughout the city and purchase marketing materials, such as banners, flyers, canopies, etc., based on the campaign.

The Gleaning Network of Texas (GROW North Texas) – Expanding SNAP at Farmers Markets in Dallas
Dallas, TX
Strike Force State
Estimated Federal Funding: $230,230
The Gleaning Network of Texas will use FMSSG funds to hire market staff for four seasonal markets to run SNAP programs, provide technical EBT assistance to farmers, purchase SNAP tokens, and implement and outreach plan.

Corporation for Findlay Market – Get Fresh With Us
Cincinnati, OH
Choice Neighborhood
Estimated Federal Funding: $37,932
Get Fresh With Us will use funds to train interns to help manage EBT operations at farmers markets, provide community outreach for SNAP at farmers markets, give market tours for SNAP-clients, develop and distribute SNAP outreach materials, and hold cooking demonstrations at markets in the area.

Main Street Monroe, Inc. – Enhancement of SNAP Accessibility and Participation at Main Street Monroe Farmers Market
Monroe, WI
Estimated Federal Funding: $179,051
This project will collaborate with community partners to implement community outreach promoting SNAP acceptance at the Main Street Monroe Farmers Market, develop a transportation plan to distribute to SNAP-clients helping them overcome transportation barriers, establish procedures for operating EBT at the market, and provide training to vendors to operate EBT.

Northeast Organic Farming Association of Vermont (NOFA-VT) – Growing EBT Access and Capacity at Vermont’s Farmers Markets
Richmond, VT
Estimated Federal Funding: $247,048
This project will implement a marketing campaign using direct mailings, financial and technical support for area farmers markets, provide outreach and education to community partners on SNAP acceptance at farmers markets, and provide supplies to markets for successful EBT programs.

The CSU, Chico Research Foundation – Increased EBT Participation in North Valley Farmers’ Markets
Chico, CA
Estimated Federal Funding: $250,000
The Chico Research Foundation will use funds to develop and implement a SNAP outreach and marketing campaign, purchase SNAP signage and other supplies, farmers market staff will be trained on SNAP operations and program strategies, host market tours to promote EBT use at the market, and cooking demonstrations will be held to encourage eating more fruits and vegetables.

North Carolina State University – More In My Basket at the Market
Wake, NC
Strike Force State
Estimated Federal Funding: $248,530
This project will provide outreach and information to community SNAP-clients, marketing materials published and distributed to SNAP-clients, provide market tours to SNAP-recipients, and cooking demonstrations.

Like this:

The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Food and Nutrition Service (FNS) has partnered with the Farmers Market Coalition (FMC) to provide eligible farmers markets and direct marketing farmers with electronic benefit transfer (EBT) equipment necessary to process Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits.

WHAT

FMC will cover the costs of purchasing or renting SNAP EBT equipment and services (set-up costs, monthly service fees, and wireless fees) for up to three years. After their application has been approved, eligible farmers and farmers markets will choose their own SNAP EBT service provider from a list of participating companies. Transaction fees (for SNAP EBT, credit, and debit payments) will not be covered.

WHEN

The application is now open. This is a first-come, first-serve opportunity, which will be over when all the funds have been allocated.

WHO

SNAP-authorized farmers markets and direct marketing farmers (who sell at one or more farmers markets) are eligible for funding if they became authorized before Nov. 18, 2011, AND fall into one of the following categories:

They do not currently possess functioning EBT equipment;
OR They currently possess functioning EBT equipment, but received that equipment before May 2, 2012.
Wondering what qualifies as ‘not currently possessing functioning EBT equipment?’ Markets and farmers do not currently possess functioning EBT equipment if:

They currently rely on manual/paper vouchers to accept SNAP,
They do not currently accept SNAP and have never possessed functioning SNAP EBT equipment,
-OR-

They do not currently accept SNAP because their EBT equipment is :

Damaged beyond repair.
Non-operational because their SNAP EBT service provider no longer offers SNAP EBT processing in their state.
Stolen or lost.
For more information on the program, including frequently asked questions, an eligibility chart, background information and application instructions, visit HERE.